Shloka 31
Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
स्त्रियस्तु राजन् वित्रस्ता भारद्वाजं निरीक्ष्य ता:
striyastu rājan vitrastā bhāradvājaṁ nirīkṣya tāḥ | hatvā pāñcālarājānaṁ rathamāruhya tiṣṭhati ||
三阇耶说道：“大王啊，众妇女一见婆罗堕阇之子（阿湿婆他摩），便惊惧战栗，凄声呼号：‘快跑——快跑！我们分不清他是罗刹还是人。看哪——他已杀了般遮罗之王，登上战车，立在那里！’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral shock of unchecked violence: when a warrior’s actions inspire terror among noncombatants, the scene signals a collapse of righteous conduct (dharma) and the spread of adharma through fear and brutality.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the women, seeing Aśvatthāmā after he has killed Drupada, panic and cry out to flee, unsure whether he is a human or a demon, as he stands on a chariot after the killing.